Alright. Hey there spawnlings, today we're looking at, a game that was played by the coolest cats. This paper thin doggo had to learn to rap, now I'll pass the mic to Rad for the recap!

RAD

To win his hunny, the gorgeous Sunny Funny, boy needed no money, just rhymes faster than a bunny. And if he was gonna learn, then he'd have to take a turn, as a hero rapper - it's the story of PaRappa.

DARREN

Fresh rhymes! Okay, that's enough of that. PaRappa the Rapper Remastered is a PS4 remake of the classic game from 1996. It's heralded as being one of the first rhythm games, and full of whacky whimsy!

BAJO

Guys, this game was so delightful when I was a kid! I remember playing it and thinking, "What is this? It's so weird!" But once I got into it I really enjoyed it! But Rad, I do believe you've never played it before, how did you find the experience?

RAD

It's a bit of a fever dream, isn't it? The game starts with this intensely nonsensical sequence, which quite frankly scared me, and then is promptly followed by a rapping onion man. Oh, but it doesn't end there! The onslaught continues with a cow teaching you to drive, a bearded frog selling tie dye, and a TV chef chicken teaching you how to bake a cake. Why she's okay with cracking eggs into a bowl and eating them is beyond me, but you do you.

BAJO

What I want to know is why she's putting prawns in the cake!

DARREN

You've just got to go with the flow! But you can't leave things loosey goosey if you want to succeed in PaRappa the Rapper! The game mostly consists of hitting specific buttons in the correct timing to make PaRappa rap. Usually your teacher will rap the phrase first, and then it's your turn to show them what you got! And the timing is quite precise.

BAJO

Yeah, it can be a little bit tricky - in particular during the Cheap Cheap Chicken level. Actually, I think that's the only time when the game gets really difficult!

RAD

That pesky chicken! I cruised through the first levels, then was trapped in this chicken dictatorship nightmare for what felt like an hour! I'd constantly be doing awfully and desperately trying to scrape by til the end, but she'd get mad and lay an egg at me and I'd have to start the level again. I don't know what I was doing wrong!

BAJO

The notorious Cheap Cheap. She was born to make you suffer. But yest, for a rhythm game I never felt like I was actually in the groove. Sometimes I'd be doing 'good' when I could've sworn I'd totally messed up the line. Which stopped me from feeling like a proper cool-guy rapper!

RAD

Aw it's okay, Bajo. You're a cool guy in my eyes.

BAJO

Thanks, Rad.

DARREN

Despite the difficulty, Cheap Cheap does have one of the best songs in the game! Her rhymes are divine! And she spits them out in time!

BAJO

And you're not wrong Darren - all the songs are really great, which is pretty important in a rhythm game. The raps are quite clever, and it's fun that there's slightly different musical styles throughout the game.

RAD

In this version of PaRappa, the gameplay hasn't been changed, only the graphics have been updated. They look great, with crisp lines and bright colours - all while keeping the original art style of the game. But unfortunately the cutscenes haven't been redone, so they really stick out as being old.

DARREN

Affirmative, Rad. This was especially noticeable as a good portion of the game is cutscenes. In fact, according to my calculations, there is no less than 18 minutes of cutscenes in this game.

BAJO

Wow! That would explain why it sometimes felt like I was watching this game more than I was playing it.

RAD

Yeah, that's quite a lot, especially because the game is super-duper short - maybe only 1-2 hours long, depending on how long you get stuck on the chicken. I do have to say, some of the characters feel very dated and stereotypical. In all the silliness of the game it isn't too jarring, but I do feel like it really shows this game's age.

BAJO

Yes and that's the main problem - isn't it? It just feels old. When I first played this, it was so fresh and And it was so exciting when it was first released because it felt fresh, different and exciting. But now, I think that's the true test of any game- can it survive a remaster and still be fun to play? This was just a nostalgia trip for me, I'm giving it 2.5 out of 5 rubber chickens.

RAD

Yeah, it was certainly interesting to play, but I wouldn't necessarily say worthwhile. I'd give it 2 out of 5 rubber chickens.